Local Religion

Leaders in the church are called to be shepherds, not a board of directors. This requires involvement in a personal shepherding ministry among the people. The Shepherd Leader unpacks the four primary ministries of shepherds - knowing, feeding, leading, and protecting - on macro (churchwide) and micro (personal) levels, providing seven elements to be incorporated into an effective shepherding plan.

"With humor and lyrical grace," Kathleen Norris meditates on a place in the American landscape that is at once desolate and sublime, harsh, and forgiving, steeped in history and myth (San Francisco Chronicle). A combination of reporting and reflection, Dakota reminds us that wherever we go, we chart our own spiritual geography.

This is a story of power, set against Puritan America and the English Civil War. Williams's interactions with King James, Francis Bacon, Oliver Cromwell, and his mentor Edward Coke set his course, but his fundamental ideas came to fruition in America, as Williams, though a Puritan, collided with John Winthrop's vision of his "City upon a Hill."

You are not alone, says Part I of The Urantia Book. The cosmos teems with trillions of inhabited planets, heavenly worlds and spirit personalities. You are not here by accident. Divine intelligence created the human race for divine purposes.

For 35 years Biblical Eldership has been the premier book explaining the biblical teaching on church eldership, which is shared pastoral leadership by a council of scripturally qualified, Spirit-placed elders. Biblical Eldership has helped ignite a worldwide awakening to this long-neglected and misunderstood subject. This new edition is a comprehensive revision. For those who love solid Bible exposition, this is a much-welcomed volume.

They immigrated to America from Germany in the nineteenth century with names like Loeb, Sachs, Seligman, Lehman, Guggenheim, and Goldman. From tenements on the Lower East Side to Park Avenue mansions, this handful of Jewish families turned small businesses into imposing enterprises and amassed spectacular fortunes. But despite possessing breathtaking wealth that rivaled the Astors and Rockefellers, they were barred by the gentile establishment from the lofty realm of "the 400," a register of New York's most elite, because of their religion and humble backgrounds.

The massacre at Mountain Meadows on September 11, 1857, was the single most violent attack on a wagon train in the 30-year history of the Oregon and California trails. Yet it has been all but forgotten. Will Bagley's Blood of the Prophets is an award-winning, riveting account of the attack on the Baker-Fancher wagon train by Mormons in the local militia and a few Paiute Indians.

In Baptists in America, Thomas S. Kidd and Barry Hankins explore the long-running tensions between church, state, and culture that Baptists have shaped and navigated. Despite the moment of unity that their early persecution provided, their history has been marked by internal battles and schisms that were microcosms of national events, from the conflict over slavery that divided North from South to the conservative revolution of the 1970s and '80s.

In 2009, at the age of 23, Deborah Feldman packed up her young son and their few possessions and walked away from her insular Hasidic roots. She was determined to forge a better life for herself, away from the rampant oppression, abuse, and isolation of her Satmar upbringing in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Out of her experience came the incendiary, best-selling memoir Unorthodox, and now, just a few years later, Feldman has embarked on a triumphant journey of self-discovery - a journey in which she begins life anew as a single mother, an independent woman, and a religious refugee.

In this audiobook, Megan Hill answers a common question of churchgoers: What's so great about the church? With rich theology and practical direction, Hill encourages and equips both first-time visitors and regular members to delight in being a part of the local church - no matter how messy and ordinary it seems today. It is only when God's people begin to see one another as the Lord sees them that they will truly find a place to belong.

Many new believers have questions about what it means to live as a Christian in the context of a local church, and pastors are looking for resources to pass along to their congregations to help them think biblically about the Christian life. Church Questions is a series by 9Marks that seeks to provide Christians with sound and accessible biblical teaching by answering common questions about church life. Each booklet offers biblical answers and practical applications with the goal of nurturing healthy church practice and commitment.

Nearly all churches and ministries consider themselves dedicated to evangelism, and many explicitly include outreach in their mission statements. But few are actually bearing fruit. Kevin Harney diagnoses this problem and offers guidance for multiplying the outreach impact of churches. Organic Outreach for Churches provides direction for local congregations to weave evangelism into the fabric of the church. Commitment to the Great Commission is not simply about sending money and prayers to missions or holding occasional events to reach out (although these things are good).

God’s vision for the local church is a family with Jesus as the Head of our house, the body of Christ built up in love. This book aims to secure us as the people of the local church to our Anchor. That in this time, in this place, we would take the truths of the Gospel like a carabiner and tether ourselves to Christ. May we rise strong and mature, no longer tossed to and fro by the strong undertow of culture—that pull back into the will and way of life in the world. There’s a unity of faith in the Spirit and a fullness of Christ the Father desires for us.

Life in the Body of Christ is a must-listen for every Christian. Every age group in every evangelical church should make it a point to study this book chapter by chapter, look seriously at every suggestion, and meditate on every scripture suggested for that purpose. Curtis Thomas has given us a gift, a stimulus to edifying reflection and action on every pertinent aspect of corporate and individual responsibility and privilege to be pursued in the life of a local church. His suggestions are brief but turgid with biblical insight and healthy church experience.

Jesus came to seek and to save the lost, paying particular attention to the downtrodden and the poor. As followers of Jesus, Christians are called to imitate his example and reach out to those who have the least. This book offers biblical guidelines and practical strategies for reaching those on the margins of our society with the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

A pesar de que la mayoría de los cristianos no se trasladan a vivir a otros países, la Biblia recluta a todos los cristianos y a todas las iglesias locales en el gran proyecto de las misiones mundiales. La iglesia local es el motor de las misiones a nivel mundial, ¿pero por dónde debemos empezar? Las iglesias no necesitan un complicado programa misionero, lo que necesitan es la Biblia y la sabiduría necesaria para saber cómo aplicarla. Este libro se basa en la Escritura y ofrece pasos prácticos para capacitar misioneros.

Ushering in the local church is much more than just shaking hands and passing offering plates. Fulfilling your role as an usher is just as important to the body of Christ as that of a prophet, teacher, or evangelist. This book covers both the biblical and the practical aspects of church ushering. Buddy Bell, founder of Ministry of Helps International, combines humor with informative teaching to help you become more effective in your ministry. You will be challenged to serve with excellence.

Does the local church today recognize its place as the beloved bride of Christ? In this audiobook, Dustin Benge invites believers who have underestimated or become disillusioned by the church to rediscover its beauty and glory. Exploring biblical qualities including the Trinitarian relationship, selfless service, and gospel proclamation, he awakens the affections of Christ's followers for their local church home.

Central Massachusetts is a land of oddities and apparitions. Stories of the strange and paranormal have been passed down from generation to generation and only the local populace has any idea of just how vast and deep their superstitions run. It’s time to truly learn that the world around you is much more than you can touch, taste, smell, see, and hear...or at least that’s what a good story is supposed to do!

In a series of 10 essays, spanning five centuries of history, beginning with the conquest of Mexico by Hermán Cortés and ending in 1992 San Francisco, Rodriguez explores the conflicts of race, religion, and cultural identity for Mexican-Americans across the landscape of his beloved California.